1. Field of the Invention
This invention patent relates to packaging. More particularly, this invention relates to a ramp made from a folded paper bottom member and a pre-formed paper top member that can be used, for example, to unload a castered product from a pallet or shipping base.
2. Description of the Related Art
Large household appliances and other articles often are shipped in protective packaging which includes a shipping base, vertical supports, a top cap, and an outer carton or transparent plastic wrapping. The article may be placed on the base during assembly and stays on the base until the article reaches its final destination. There the packaging is removed and the article lifted or otherwise taken off the base.
Modern appliances often have casters or wheels for easier moving. However, even with casters or wheels it remains difficult to move a large article off its shipping base and onto the surrounding floor. Various ramps have been incorporated into product packaging designs to make this task easier. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,505,140 discloses a pallet having wooden ramps that can be stored underneath the load bearing surface of the pallet and pulled out for use. U.S. Pat. No. 5,911,179 discloses a ramp hingedly attached to a pallet deck. U.S. Pat. No. 6,105,511 discloses a pallet and a pair of boards that can be used as ramps and that can be stored on top of the pallet when not in use. U.S. Pat. No. 6,240,854 discloses a pallet for a wheeled item, the pallet having ramps formed on the pallet surface and wedges that fit within the ramps to help load the wheeled article onto the pallet. Once the article is loaded onto the pallet the wedges are removed and the article's undercarriage is supported by an integrally formed support member. A separate loading ramp is provided for loading the article onto the pallet. U.S. Pat. No. 6,769,368 discloses a ramp hingedly attached to a pallet deck. U.S. Patent Publication No. 2004/0108238 discloses a shipping carton base having hinged ramps attached to the base. The ramps are preferable made of plywood. U.S. Patent Publication No. 2004/0232021 discloses a shipping container having a ramp attached to the container floor by hinges. U.S. Patent Publication No. 2008/0000397 discloses a shipping container having a plywood ramp attached to the container floor by hinges.
None of these references describes a ramp that is made entirely from a multi-layer folded paper blank. This may be because heretofore no one has successfully developed a paper ramp that can withstand the load forces of a large castered or wheeled article.
This it is an objective of the present invention to provide a paper ramp for enabling a castered article to be easily moved off a shipping base.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a paper ramp that can be made from a multi-layer folded blank.